The Astros give A.J. Hinch his second chance at managing:

Hinch managed Arizona from May 2009 until July 2010, when he was fired after a 31-48 start. He was the vice president of professional scouting for San Diego from 2010 until August.

Porter was a first-time manager, and Luhnow said he wanted someone who had managerial experience this time around. Hinch also was attractive to Luhnow because he had worked in baseball front offices as well as been a manager.

“He’s well-rounded — understands my perspective,” Luhnow said. “He comes with a breadth of experience that very few guys have. The whole combination, the whole package was very unique.”

Hinch is very smart, a Stanford graduate. The Baseball Musings Hinch archive is here. He seemed to start well with the Diamondbacks. Players were skeptical at first as A.J. was perceived at too close to the front office, but he won over at least Dan Haren. He made some unusual moves, which players don’t often like. The DBacks simply did not win with Hinch, and he was gone, along with the GM who hired him.

It strikes me that an analysis driven front office like Houston should get along well with a manager like Hinch. We’ll see.